"Internet radio broadcasters dealt setback"

CNN.com
Internet radio broadcasters dealt setback
POSTED: 9:32 a.m. EDT, April 17, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/internet/04/17/internetradio.ap/index.html

"Internet radio broadcasters were dealt a setback on Monday when a panel of copyright judges threw out requests to reconsider a ruling that hiked the royalties they must pay to record companies and artists. "

"A broad group of public and private broadcasters, including radio stations, small start up companies, National Public Radio and major online sites like Yahoo Inc. and Time Warner Inc.'s AOL, had objected to the new royalties set March 2, saying they would force a drastic cutback in services that are now enjoyed by some 50 million people."

The Copyright Board denied the Internet radio stations their requests to stop the new rules on royalties paid to these over payed "artists" and their labels. Because of the fact the Internet broadcasted radios allow people to get music is the reason why these new higher royalties have been put in place. The law is allowing the Internet broadcasters to " allowing the webcasters to calculate fees by average listening hours, as they had been, as opposed to the new system of charging a royalty each time every song is heard by an online listener. " This will allow the Internet broadcasters to try to limit the amount they must in royalties.

According to N. Mark Lam, the CEO of Live365 Inc., which his company aggregates audio streams from thousands of radio stations and other small webcasters, said that under the new royalty rules, "there is no industry." The competition in the Internet broadcast station and limited revenues made by these companies makes a big problem in this industry. When these laws go into effect next year many stations can and will go out of business.

As a person who does like music I understand that those involved in the production of the music should be paid. But how much? In most industries things are sold to a company to produce a new product. The person who sold the cloth in the first place don't receive royalties so why should these artists get such a ridiculous amount of money. They are already overpaid and these new laws just give them more money to buy all of their necessary Bentley's and buy them that 5th and 6th house. They get too much, and these huge royalties need to be cut back.

And if there is not a cutback in these royalities then radio stations on the internet and those on the radio can soon all be gone...